EU: European
Ombudsman publishes guide on how Ombudsman can help citizens:
Guide (link)

UK: Report on
the operation in 2001 of the Terrorism Act 2000. It shows that
131 people were arrested under the Act in the year February-February
2001-2002, of these only 41 were charged and of those charged
only 19 were under the Terrorism Act: Report (link)

UK: Police arrests,
stop and search figures for England and Wales (2001). The statistics
show that 740,700 people were stopped and searched, 13% were
arrested (but no figures given for the number convicted). This
means that 644,409 people were stopped and searched and were
not arrested: Report (large pdf, 535k)

The UK House
of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee has published a report on
"Private Military Companies": Text (a very large pdf file
3MB)

European Commission: Update of
the "Scoreboard" covering the so-called area of "freedom,
security and justice", January-June 2002: Scoreboard
(550k, pdf, 91 pages)

September 2002

The challenge to the listing
of the PKK as a terrorist group by the Council is summarised
in the Official Journals, case in Court: C
233/32 (pdf) plus challenge by the Kurdistan National
Congress also to the Court of Justice: Case

Final Declaration of the 7th
meeting of Ministers responsible for migration affairs, Helsinki,
16-17 September 2002 (Council of Europe): Declaration
(pdf)

USA: "The National Security
Strategy of the United States of America", which adds "regime
change" to USA objectives: Report
(pdf)

The Electronic Privacy Information
Center (EPIC) and Privacy International today released the fifth
annual Privacy and Human Rights survey. The report reviews the
state of privacy in over fifty countries around the world: Report
(link)

August 2002

Denmark - statement by the International
Federation of Journalists (IFJ) on police bugging journalist's
conversation and court case: IFJ

USA: Text of ruling by Foreign
Intelligence Surveillance Court limiting the powers of the Justice
Department: Ruling
plus article by James Bamford commenting on the ruling, "It
found that the Justice Department wanted to use the U.S.A. Patriot
Act improperly": James
Bamford (thanks to cryptome)

Denial of visas
to Conference participants - Press Release
from War Resisters International (11.8.02): Press release

Report from Wall
Street Journal on resistance by German companies for information
on employees in the search for terrorists and "profiling":
Report

COINTELPRO is an
acronym for the FBI's domestic "counterintelligence programs"
to neutralize political dissidents. Although covert operations
have been employed throughout FBI history, the formal COINTELPRO's
of 1956-1971 were broadly targeted against radical political
organizations: Church
Committee
report (link)

UK: Information
Commissioner challenges legal basis of data retention. The Information
Commissioner has released a legal opinion questioning the legality
of the data retention provision of the Terrorism Act 2001. The
opinion found that becuase the information can be obtained for
other purposes besides national security, it violates the Human
Rights Act. Guardian,
30.7.02

Council of the
European Union, proposal for a: "Council Directive on minimum
standards for the qualification and status of third country nationals
and stateless persons as refugees or as persons who otherwise
need international protection" - re-defining who is a "refugee".
The text is "partially accessible" (meaning that the
names of the EU Member States have been deleted), doc 7882/02:
Text (Word 97) Text (pdf)
May 2002

Surveillance
in the USA - interesting article from Village : Linkand for their coverage of the "Attack
on civil liberties" see: Voice

EU: European Commission
Communication to the Convention on the future of the EU: Link

UK: Final draft
of code of practice on interception under the Regulation of Investigatory
Powers Act 2000 (RIPA): Text

EU documents
reveal details of its demands for so-called "opening up"
of Third World markets: Report

April 2002

EU: Text agreed
by the Council of the European Union on the Directive laying
down minimum standards for the reception of applicants for asylum
in Member States: Full-text

EU: Green Paper
from the European Commission on "alternative dispute resolution
in civil and commercial matters": Full-text

UK: Summary of
Home Office "consultation" in the autumn of 2000 on
the draft code of practice on the interception of communications
under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA):
Link
European Commission proposal for a Framework Decision on cybercrime,
including cyber-terrorism: Full-text

The UK and Romania
have set up a joint intelligence unit in Bucharest to "fight
illegal migration", background interview with Romanian Minister
of the Interior: Interview

The European
Convention on the future structure of the EU started work on
28 February. The official Convention website: Convention, there has been set
up a site for "civil society" to make its views known:
"Official
civil society" site

UK: Home Guidance
for police and public on sections of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime
and Security Act 2001, including fingerprinting and obligation
of public to pass on information: Guidance (link)
February 2002

UK Home Office
publishes "Code of practice" under the Anti-terrorism,
Crime and Security Act 2001 on the seizure and "detention"
of cash: Text

EU Commissioner
for Enlargement says restrictions on free movement for accession
countries will remain for many years. Although these countries
have to implement the justice and home affairs acquis
prior to joining they also have to fully implement the Schengen
acquis: Report

European Commission
proposal (COM(2002) 71 final, 11.2.02) for a Council Directive
to give short-term residence package to asylum-seekers who "cooperate
with the competent authorities" by giving information on
"illegal immigration or trafficking in human beings":
Proposal (pdf)

Graham Watson
MEP questions Council over adoption of a different definition
of terrorism under the written procedure Decisions on 27 December
2001: Text
of Question to Council

Police and human
rights training manual produced by the Office of the UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva - provides interesting
yardsticks for police forces and their deployment outside the
EU: Manual (Word 97) Manual (pdf)